


Feel a Fever

by BossToaster (ChaoticReactions)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Sick Character, Sick Shiro (Voltron), Sorry Ulaz, Ulaz learns a lot about humans and it's all disgusting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-03
Updated: 2017-04-03
Packaged: 2018-10-14 05:57:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10530324
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChaoticReactions/pseuds/BossToaster
Summary: Shiro goes down with a cold, and Ulaz learns about humans and his place in the team





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [valkyriered](https://archiveofourown.org/users/valkyriered/gifts).



Suddenly, all of Shiro’s air escaped his lungs with a forceful noise.

Ulaz paused in putting away his laundry and turned to look at him.

There was no reaction from Shiro.  It was as if regularly and forcefully expelling very necessary breath wasn’t even worth a blink from him.  He didn’t even pick up his head, just scratched over his nose and went back to reading his notes.

Cohabitating with an alien often led to misunderstandings and confusion.  But Ulaz had never heard Shiro make that kind of sound before, and it was so violent that it couldn’t have been good.  Knowing his lover’s penchant for under sharing his distress, Ulaz narrowed his eyes, looking him over with a more critical eye.

Shiro did seem to be droopier than normal.  Normally he sat perfectly upright, but today he was curled in slightly.  There was a hint of pink to his cheeks, like when they’d been kissing for some time, but there had been no contact to cause it.  His skin seemed to have a hint more of a sheen - sweat, Ulaz remembered.  Humans secreted salty liquids when they were overheated.  Ulaz had found that disgusting, at first, but he’d been convinced otherwise when Shiro was shining in the lights of their room and tasted faintly of salt as Ulaz touched him. 

At first, Ulaz thought that perhaps Shiro had found something that interested him, or it was like the times he’d decided to surprise Ulaz.  But combined with that strange noise and his listless posture, Ulaz doubted it.

After taking the time to finish putting his belongs away in his drawer space, Ulaz stepped behind Shiro.  He wanted for his lover to turn around and look at him before he put a hand on his shoulder.  Startling either of them was an unwise decision.  “What is that noise you were making?”

“What noise?” Shiro asked, tilting his head all the way backwards to look up at Ulaz, rather than turn around properly.   
  
Ulaz frowned at him, not sure how Shiro could have missed it.  It had sounded painful, and he’d vocalized it.  “The air expulsion.”

There was a long moment of confused silence, then Shiro’s expression cleared.  “Oh.  Just a sneeze.  An irritation in my airways.  There might have been dust on these papers.  They’re very common and completely harmless.  I’m surprised you haven’t seen it before.  Pidge has allergies, she sneezes often.”

He sounded very casual about the whole thing.  Ulaz peered at him, but that wasn’t something Shiro would lie about.  It was too easy for Ulaz to double check if it was not true.  “This ‘sneeze’ will not harm you?”

“Oh, no!”  Shiro actually laughed, grinning up at him.  “It can be a symptom of minor illnesses, occasionally, but they are very rarely serious.  Just not especially sanitary.”

Ulaz snorted.  “I am used to you not being sanitary.”

“Look, just because we prefer water to tongue baths-”

The argument was comfortable and familiar, and Ulaz was quickly distracted from questions about Shiro’s strange human behaviors.

But he didn’t forget either.

***

The next morning, Ulaz was woken by a loud, sudden noise.  He turned over, not quite fully roused and intending to drift back off, but then there was another, even louder.  Both were from barely more than a foot from his head.

Finally cracking his eyes open, Ulaz saw Shiro curled up in a tight ball.  As he watched, Shiro gave another of the sneeze into his cupped hand.  When he pulled back to take a breath, his face was shiny.

Okay, unsanitary was right.

“Is there something wrong with the air?” Ulaz asked, blinking sleepily.  “I thought the sneeze was because of the papers?”

Shiro blinked blearily at him, and his eyes were red rimmed.  “No,” he replied, but it came out thick, as though he still had a hand over his nose.  “M’fine.”

One didn’t need to have known Shiro for long to recognize the lie.

Ulaz leaned forward, intending to pet Shiro’s bangs out of his face.  It was a gesture all of the humans seemed to like.  But when his palm touched the skin of Shiro’s forehead, Ulaz froze.  “Your skin is heated.”

“It’s fine,” Shiro shot back.  “Just a cold.  It’s not a big deal.”

Staring at him, Ulaz frowned.

Shiro sneezed again.

“You said the sneezes are a symptom.  Is heated skin also one?”  Shiro looked distinctly shady at that, so Ulaz took his lover by the shoulders and guided him back up to the pillows.  “Stay.”

Shiro started to sit up, but he was pressed firmly back against the mattress.  “Ulaz!  I can’t stay here.  I’m busy.  It’s not like the universe takes a day off.”

“You can stay for breakfast,” Ulaz replied.  “How do you make the sneeze stop?”

Shiro sighed.  “You wait.”

Eyeing him, Ulaz frowned.  “Rest through breakfast.”

“Fine,” Shiro replied, laying back and groaning.  “I’m not hungry anyway.”

The fact that Shiro took so little convincing was proof enough that something was wrong. Ulaz eyed him, then stepped out into the hallway.  The other humans are usually helpful when he asks questions about their species.  That should continue to hold true.

***

“How hot was he?” Hunk asked carefully, his brow wrinkled with worry.

Snickering, Lance waved his spork at Ulaz.  “He’s a bit biased on that, right?  Ulaz thinks Shiro is very hot.”

Keith made a face at him and kicked out.  Judging by the thump, it hit the leg of Lance’s chair, jolting him in warning.

Ignoring them both, Ulaz frowned.  “Warmer than usual.  It was significant enough for me to tell, but I do not know more than that.”

“Did you scan with the pad?” Pidge asked.  When Ulaz shook his head, she sighed.  “Well, do that when you get back.  If it’s over 100 degrees by our measurements, he shouldn’t be getting out of bed.  Less than that and he’s probably alright, though I don’t exactly want to do hand-to-hand combat with him until he feels better.”

Nodding, Ulaz made a mental note to check.  “And if he does, what should I do?  He has been having sneezes.”

Judging by the quirk of Hunk’s lips, his grammar has suffered somewhere.  The translators don’t always compensate perfectly, which Ulaz was resigned to, even when it occasionally earned him teasing.  “Nothing else?  Just warm and sneezing?  I hate to say it, but Shiro might be right.  That’s pretty common.  If we can convince him to take the morning off it’s better for everyone, but he gets colds a lot after-”  Hunk’s gaze dropped.  “After his year in captivity.”

“Well, there’s some stuff you can do to help,” Lance said.  “I mean, we can’t exactly run down to the store and get something for him.  I’m not sure I’d trust Altean medicine in this case.”

Coran brushed over his mustache.  “Using medicine designed for a species on the other side of the known universe and their immune systems?  I wouldn’t recommend it myself, unless it was a dire situation.”

“Exactly,” Lance agreed. “But something warm to drink.  Non dairy.  Kaltenecker shouldn’t be involved at all.  We have something like tea, that should be good.”

Hunk nodded.  “I can add some sweeteners to help him keep it down.”  He paused, considering.  “Has he been nauseous?”

Well, Shiro hadn’t said he was, but he’d barely wanted to admit he was sneezing.  Ulaz only inclined his head, which seemed to get across ‘who can tell with Shiro.’

“You won’t know until he doubles over,” Keith agreed.  “He’ll fake it until he absolutely can’t anymore, trust me on that.  Keep something nearby like a trashcan or a bag.”

Ulaz reminded himself it’s Shiro they were talking about, and that he wanted to help his lover feel better.  Even if humans were occasionally disgusting.

“If his fever gets over 102 then definitely call for someone,” Pidge added.  “And if he has a fever, some shaking is normal, and he’ll probably be sore, but higher than that and he can have odd symptoms.  If he starts acting really strange, call in reinforcements.”  She paused, thinking it over.  “Mom always used to put a humidifier in my room when I was feeling bad.  I can throw something together real fast for that.”

“Most important is to keep him hydrated,” Lance replied.  “Keep bringing him water and get him to drink.”

Ulaz nodded slowly.  “Alright.  Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Hunk replied easily.  “Let us know one way or the other, okay?”

Stretching, Lance leaned back against the chair.  “And tell him to take his time getting better.  We’ll just all take this day to relax and-”

Allura cleared her throat then.  “Actually, since Shiro will be resting for the morning, I’ll take over training.”

Silence reigned, then Lance met Ulaz’ eyes seriously.  “Tell Shiro to get well soon.”

“I’ll pass that on,” Ulaz replied, already standing.

It wasn’t until he was nearly back to the room that Ulaz realized what this all meant.

The team trusted him to take care of Shiro at his most vulnerable without so much as a pause or comment.  They gave him the tools and information he needed and that was all.

Ulaz’ lips curled up.

***

When Ulaz got back to the room, Shiro was still asleep.  Picking up the pad, he took the opportunity to scan his lover while he couldn’t complain or fuss over it.

At first the measurements were in Altean, but all the pads had toggles to switch them to the Earth styles (or, one of them, which was a regular source of joking contention among the paladins).  A quick tap showed Ulaz that Shiro’s temperature was currently 100.6 degrees F.  Whatever F was.

Above the estimated line, then.  Shiro would be staying in bed that day.

As Ulaz set the pad back down, Shiro stirred and cracked his eyes open.  “Back from breakfast?” He asked, voice rough with both sleep and something rougher.  Perhaps his sickness had damaged his throat?

“Yes,” Ulaz replied.  “The Princess will be taking training for the morning.  You are ordered to remain in bed.”

Technically a lie, but one he believed Allura would back if asked, despite her occasional bouts of continued mistrust.  It was for Shiro’s own good to believe he no longer had a choice in the matter.

Groaning, Shiro flopped back.  “What did you tell them? It’s not that bad.”

“I told them your skin was warmer and that you were sweating.  They told me this means you have a fever, and that you are probably contagious.  It seems like they are used to this happening.”

Shiro sighed.  “They are,” he admitted, as if it were a personal failing.  “I try not to, but...”  He tapped his nose.  “The scar here goes through a part of the body that’s supposed to help filter out bacteria and viruses.  I’m more vulnerable.”  

Another way Shiro’s body had been harmed by Zarkon and his witch, though this one unintentional.  It was a vulnerability they never would have meant to create in what was meant to be a weapon for them, but one that Voltron now carried instead.

It was a secret Ulaz would protect as best he could.

In the meantime, he could only help Shiro through.

“Hunk will be bringing tea by before training,” Ulaz told him.  “Otherwise, I am told you should continue to rest.”

Shiro sighed, but with an order hanging over his head, he didn’t fight.  He flopped onto his back, but after a few moments, started to give awful sounding wheezes.  “Okay, back is bad.  Not on my back.”  He pushed himself up onto his elbows and took the pillows from the bed, stacking them up until he could lean back in more of a reclined sit.  But it didn’t seem to help much as he still gave wet sounding coughs.

Well, if Shiro needed something to lie back on, Ulaz could provide that.

Scooting back onto the bed, Ulaz pressed his back to the wall, then tugged Shiro to lean back against his chest.  Thankfully he hadn’t put on his armor yet for the day, so he was only in the soft undershirt, which would be comfortable to lay on.

“What are- Ulaz, I don’t want to make you sick.  You should go.  I’ll be on fine on my own.”  Shiro tilted his head all the way back to frown up at him.  The look lost much of it’s edge when his eyes were so glazed.

Ulaz pressed a kiss to his forehead.  “Our immune systems are very different.  I do not think I can catch anything from you, and nor could the Alteans.  Your concern may be valid with the other paladins, which is why you are to remain in your room, but it will not bother me.”

For a moment, Shiro looked ready to complain, but then he huffed and relaxed.  “Fine,” he muttered, sounding exhausted.  “It’s on your head.”

Pausing, Ulaz frowned.  “What is?  I am not wearing anything.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Shiro replied, and he was still much warmer than usual, but Ulaz didn’t find it entirely unpleasant.  Especially when he relaxed, a heavy, trusting lean.  “Thank you.  I appreciate it.”

“You are welcome,” Ulaz replied softly, and he smiled when Shiro began to snore.

Trust.  From the team and from Shiro.

Despite everything, despite all the reasons to never allow a full Galra anywhere near them and Shiro, he was here with his lover dozing and vulnerable against his chest, and no one even blinked.

And Ulaz would be worthy of that trust.  He swore it.

  
  
  
  
  



End file.
